


Without Pretense

by AmeliaDarkholme



Category: Charlie's Angels (2019), Charlie's Angels (Movies), IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - No Pennywise (IT), Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, F/F, F/M, Human Pennywise (IT), M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2020-09-16
Packaged: 2021-02-07 20:34:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21464137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmeliaDarkholme/pseuds/AmeliaDarkholme
Summary: Eddie Kaspbrak likes to think he's a normal man, who works a normal job, and lives a normal life. He likes it though, despite how boring it sometimes feels - not that he'd ever admit it. Boring is good. Boring is safe.But then it all changes when a young woman named Sabina Wilson literally drags him out of a gunfight, only to run face first into another gun, held in the hand of one Richie Tozier.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Jane Kano/Sabina Wilson
Comments: 15
Kudos: 35





	1. PROLOGUE

**Author's Note:**

> This story is a crossover between the latest Charlie's Angels movie (which is surprisingly good btw) and Andy Muschietti's IT. I fell hard and fast for Kristen Stewart's Sabina Wilson, and if you guys have seen the movie, you'll understand why. Then, my lovely sister pointed out that Sabina's basically a female Richie Tozier, minus all the 'your mum' jokes, and if Richie had Barry Berkman's job. And that's really how I came up with this story. I'll admit, this is basically a self-indulgence story that I write for my own pleasure teehee :P
> 
> Oh! Almost forgot. Big thanks to my dear Oksana Polastri for editing this mess. You're the best :D I'll let you guys read the story now ;)

There was a reason why Bosley, known to those closest to her as Rebekah Montgomery, had such a soft spot for a certain wayward Angel. No matter how infuriating she was, with her stupid and ill-timed jokes, Sabina Wilson always got away with it. Every time Rebekah looked at the young lady with the smart mouth, the former Angel would have a fond smile tugging at her lips as her mind flew back to her past, to a man who was arguably _the_ best friend she’d ever had. A man who’d had a troublesome childhood, despite being born into a loving, well-off family. A man who was so famous for running his mouth that he’d gotten the nickname Trashmouth.

Once upon a time, long before she’d became an Angel, Rebekah was a CIA agent. And she was a good one. A great one, even. She could have been the best in the field, if it weren't for her best friend. Her competitive nature would usually find it upsetting that she hadn’t become the number one agent in the CIA. But Richie Tozier was just _so_ _difficult_ to hate, and she simply had no choice but to befriend the idiot instead. They were always there for each other, backing up one another through everything, whatever the situation was. Rebekah herself hadn’t had the easiest childhood, having grown up in an orphanage. It was why she was more than proud to say that she’d found a family in Richie Tozier. They’d once sworn that they’d follow each other to the end of the world.

_("I'm leaving, Bex. I can't take it anymore. I'm done. I want to live a normal life now. Will you come with me?")_

Rebekah was the one who mentored Sabina, even though Charlie was the one who found her. Rebekah was Sabina's Edgar. She had been thirty-eight and the girl had been only twenty, back when Sabina had started her training. The first time they met, Rebekah instantly zeroed in on those bright blue eyes. She could tell from those eyes alone, that behind all the laughs and the jokes and the cheeky persona, Sabina had a lot of anger toward the world. She may have all of the money in the world, but her parents had never provided her with what she really needed—the kind of love and attention that every child deserves. However, that wasn't the reason why Rebekah noticed Sabina's eyes. It was more because those eyes reminded her of her former friend's eyes, even though both Richie and Sabina looked nothing like one another.

It had been years, but Rebekah could still remember the man whom she’d loved more than she was brave enough to admit.

_("We're all gathered here to pay our respects to one of the bravest and most genuine men we have ever had the honour to know – Richard Tozier.")_

While she’d trained Sabina, Rebekah also went to check on the girl's records. Her wealthy family had tried hard to hide it, but it didn't take Rebekah long to find Sabina's birth certificate _and_ adoption papers. Her biological mother was a normal person who lived a normal life, currently married to a doctor with two children. Rebekah visited the woman once, under the pretence of being a makeup saleswoman, and although she seemed rather nice, it didn't change the fact that she'd _abandoned_ poor Sabina right after she was born. The former Angel was half-tempted to throw a bit of a prank on her, but changed her mind when she remembered how happy Sabina was now, without that woman. Besides, Rebekah was more interested in finding out about Sabina's biological father.

There was nothing about him though. They’d left the name blank on Sabina's birth certificate. But something that trivial wouldn't deter Rebekah. With Charlie's help, which came after hours of literal begging, she managed to dig deep into the past of Sabina's biological mother. She dug so deeply that she found out how the woman had moved out of Derry, Maine, when she was only eighteen, shortly after her graduation. Richie didn't talk much about his past, even at gun point. But Rebekah remembered a night when they were playing poker and used truths as their stakes, and how one of the truths Richie gave was about his hometown. Digging deeper, Rebekah found that Richie had dated that woman in his senior year until the day she and her whole family had upped and left Derry.

Rebekah wouldn't need Elena's brain to figure out the rest.

"You okay, Boz?" Sabina said, snapping the former Angel out of her reverie.

And right away, Rebekah slipped right back into becoming Bosley.

"Sure, kid," the woman replied with a smile. They were on the back of jet, ready to jump off for their next mission. Jane and Elena had left already, leaving only the mentor and her protégée.

_Your father would have been so proud of you, kiddo._

"Alright then. Let's go, woman! Before you get any older!" Sabina said with a laugh, giving a mischievous wink before she jumped off of the plane to catch up with Jane and Elena.

The older blonde watched the young woman whom she had loved almost like her own daughter chasing her friends in the air, her giggles ringing loudly through the earpieces they all had. The sound brought a fond smile to her face, even though she could feel her heart almost literally aching as well.

Because, although she might not look much like her father, Sabina Wilson's pale blue eyes and her infectious laughter would always remind Rebekah of Richie Tozier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave me a comment and tell me what you think about the story so far :D


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie's always been loyal. Especially for his best friends. This is why he does stupid and reckless things that he'll always regret in the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to leave a comment, guys! :)

Eddie had worked for Pennywise Incorporated for many years as their head researcher. He had no idea how he’d managed to get their attention when he was had only just graduated from UW Madison Pharmacy School. Sure, he’d graduated with a GPA of 3.95, but it didn’t change the fact that there were literally _hundreds _of people applying to get into Pennywise Incorporated every year. He wasn’t complaining though. Pennywise Inc. was probably one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in America, developing and producing all kinds of medicines for a whole range of maladies. And they paid Eddie more than he’d ever need for four lifetimes. Sometimes, Eddie would wonder what the hell he should do with all of the money in his account. But he really wasn’t complaining. How could he? Life was good for him. He had everything a man like him could ever want.

He was _lonely _though. Extremely so.

It was probably why he gave no fucks that he was making his first mistake _ever _since high school.

_(“Run away with me, Eds. Run away with me. _Please. _I promise, I’ll take care of you.”)_

Despite all the money that he had, and his position that ranked him fourth-in-line in the company, Eddie almost had no work friends at all. Hell, he hadn’t had a proper friend since he’d graduated from high school. And then he’d taken his late father’s car to Wisconsin in the middle of the night without telling anyone, especially not his mother. And Eddie had been alone ever since. He knew it was his fault. He was never the easiest person to be friends with. He was a fussy hypochondriac with a foul mouth and an even fouler temper. He’d only ever dated twice, during his university years, which had ended up turning out so terribly, he’d sworn off dating altogether ever since. For the first decade, Eddie didn’t mind it much. He was successful. He was living the life he’d dreamed of since he was a child. What more would he need when he practically had everything?

His only friend then was Beverly Marsh, whom he had met purely by chance. People always wondered how in the world they had become friends. She was the CEO _and _wife of Ben Hanscom, co-owner of Hanscom-Hanlon Architects, which was dubbed as one of the best architectural companies in the country. There seemed literally no way for the both of them to ever cross paths, but they did. Eddie had ran into Beverly in a Starbucks, quite literally, because he was in a rush to get to a board meeting. Thankfully, he’d finished his coffee while he had his sandwich in there. Unfortunately though, Beverly hadn’t, and he made her spill her coffee all over her expensive business suit. He could just as easily buy her a new one and be done with it, but Eddie _could _be a gentleman if he wanted to, quite contrary to what most believed. So he’d offered to buy her lunch on top of promising to send her a brand new suit to replace her stained one, and, long story short, they found out that they got along really well and had been really close friends ever since.

But then he met Stanley Uris, and everything changed.

Or, more like, he _re-_met Stanley. One of his childhood best friends.

_(“We’ll always be best friends, right?”)_

_(“Fucking obviously, Staniel. You can’t get rid of me or Eds or Big Bill so easily.”)_

_(“Y-y-yes, Stan. You’re s-s-stuck with us t-t-till the end.”)_

_(“Yeah! Once a Loser, always a Loser.”)_

Stanley was Lucian Pennywise’s personal accountant, and he’d worked closely with the man for even longer than Eddie had. Eddie had found his childhood best friend again purely by chance, pretty much like how he’d met Beverly. Eddie was in an elevator, on his way to the office whilst angrily texting his assistant for a mistake they’d made, when a hand stopped him from exiting. He was about to yell at whoever it was for daring to touch him, when he was met with a familiar face that he hadn’t seen for over two decades. He’d grown up, and he sounded different too, but there was no denying that it was Stan the Man. They spent the next two minutes hugging and holding back tears in the elevator. They promised to have dinner then, and Eddie found out that even though they hadn’t seen each other for ages, they still hit off really well.

Eddie was introduced to Stanley’s wife and son when they had their dinner at Stanley’s place. Patty was a beautiful blonde with calming blue eyes and a personality that complimented her husband’s. Their son Robbie was only ten, and he reminded Eddie of Stanley when he was that age because of how much he looked and acted like his father, except he had Patricia’s eyes and smile. Ever since then, Eddie had been a regular guest in the Uris household for the past two years. He’d come to visit the family at least every weekend for either lunch or dinner, and Robbie was always so happy to see his _Uncle Eds._ Despite the nickname that tugged at Eddie’s heart a little painfully, the chemist loved the boy so much and would do anything for him.

Again, that was probably why he was being this stupidly reckless.

“Thanks for seeing me, Eddie,” Stanley said for the second time that day, after Eddie had practically thrown himself onto the seat across from him in Starbucks.

The _same _Starbucks where he’d met Beverly.

“We’ve agreed we’ll keep it quiet until we’re sure it’s safe, Stan,” Eddie grumbled after he made sure his voice was low enough. “You were the one who told me to stay away from you and your family for some time until we have gathered enough proof.”

“I know. But I have no choice,” the other man said, and only then did Eddie realise that something was wrong. Stanley was always tense, even when he was only with Eddie and his family. It came from his uptight parents’ influence. But this was a different kind of tense.

He seemed like he was _afraid._

And Eddie understood perfectly. After all, he’d nearly had a panic attack when Stanley came up to him and told him about Pennywise’s secret dealings. For two decades Eddie had worked for Pennywise, but he’d never thought, not even once, that the company he worked for was dealing in _fucking child trafficking. _Yet it was still happening. Stanley had found out about it because he was really good at what he did. Really fucking good at it, in fact, to the point where he could discover that his boss had been doing the most heinous kind of crime. They knew that someone like Lucian Pennywise wouldn’t take too kindly to them finding out his secret, even if Eddie and Stanley were arguably two of his most valuable employees. So, the two best friends had agreed to keep quiet and stay away from one another while they tried to find out more about it. That was how Eddie knew that something horrible had happened to his friend.

“Stan, what’s wrong?” Eddie asked carefully. He reached forward to hold Stanley’s hand, and was worried when the man flinched. “You know you can talk to me, right? We’re in this together, man.”

Stanley looked up then, his eyes brimming with tears as his face twisted in barely repressed anguish. He let out a choked sob before he spoke. “He found out, Eddie. _Pennywise. _He knew that I knew about his illegal dealings. And he’s threatened to kill Patty _and _s-sell Robbie to child prostitution.”

“Fucking hell,” Eddie breathed. He felt an upcoming panic attack ready to happen, but he quickly tamped it down. Stanley needed him. He couldn’t afford to lose his shit now. Taking a deep breath, he said, “How did he find out?”

“Apparently, despite having worked personally for him for over two decades since Pennywise Incorporated began, he’s never really trusted me,” Stanley explained. “He barged into my office the other day and told me that my computer activity has always been tracked since the day I first started working for him. Everything I do, from working to playing games to watching porn, he _knows._”

“Jesus fucking Christ…” Eddie breathed out as pinched the bridge of his nose, suddenly feeling exhausted and drained.

If Pennywise had no qualms about selling innocent children, there was no doubt that he would make Stanley go through hell before dying a painful death. Hell, he probably wouldn’t even be allowed to die, instead being forced to watch whatever horrible tortures Pennywise would inflict on Stanley’s family. Everyone knew that there were worse things than dying.

A sudden, terrifying thought came into Eddie’s mind as he looked at his surroundings frantically, alarmed. He didn’t want to believe it, but…

“Stanley,” he slowly said, his heartbeat picking up. “Stan, I want you to be honest with me. What else did he say? Did he offer you anything?”

It was only for a split second, but the guilt that flashed in Stanley’s eyes told him everything.

“I’m sorry, Eddie,” his best friend whispered, sounding even more miserable as a fresh wave of tears fell from his eyes. “He told me that if I gave him your name, he would leave Patty and Robbie alone.”

Eddie wanted to be mad. He wanted to yell at Stanley, to punch him in his stupid face and break his perfect nose. But he understood. He really did. Even though the thought that he was going to die horribly terrified him out of his mind, Eddie knew that if he was in Stanley’s position, he would have done the same thing. Stanley was like a brother to him, and that meant Patty and Robbie had become his family too. He really couldn’t imagine Patty screaming her throat raw from whatever torture Pennywise would have inflicted on her. _Or worse_—to picture the things that little Robbie would have to go through.

“It’s alright, Stan,” Eddie said. “I understand. I really do. We’ve been through a lot together since we were fucking children. I know you wouldn’t rat me out if it weren’t for Patty and Robbie. I would do the same thing if I were you.”

Memories of him at age twelve with three other boys, wading through the sewers back in their hometown in Derry to find one, specific little boy, only to find the many corpses of children that had been missing too, invaded Eddie’s mind involuntarily. He hadn’t thought about that gruesome part of his childhood for almost thirty years, and the return of those memories nearly sent him spiralling into another panic attack. But again, Eddie pushed it aside. He had more pressing matters to deal with. He couldn’t afford to lose control like that. Not now.

“They’re going to kill you,” Stanley said in a shaky voice. “A sniper will do it. Pop you right in your head. Pennywise said I had to get you to see me, so I could witness you die in front of me. He said… he said it’s my punishment.”

“_Oh, Stanley…”_ Eddie whispered, feeling his heart break for his best friend, despite his impending doom. “I’m sorry, man. I’m _so _sorry you have to see this.”

The accountant shook his head, giving Eddie a small, sad smile as he reached for Eddie’s hand. “Don’t say that. It’s _my_ fault. I should be the one who’s sorry. And I really am, Eddie. I’m sorry for dragging you into this stupid mess I’ve made. I just… Those children were taken from their families, and I couldn’t help it. It’s not just Robbie. I uh… I thought of Georgie, and—“

_Georgie Denbrough_.

Little Georgie, who used to follow them around when his big brother Bill brought him along to play with the four friends. Georgie, who would come to Eddie whenever he scraped his knee because he knew Eddie always had strips of band-aids with him. Georgie, who would always ask Stanley to help him with his homework. Georgie, who idolised a certain lanky boy with huge glasses, much to the amusement and dismay of the older Denbrough.

Georgie, who went missing when he was only five years old, whose body was never found alongside the corpses the four boys had stumbled into down in that fucking sewer.

“I told you, Stan; _it’s fine_. I understand,” Eddie said once again, offering his friend a reassuring smile as he squeezed the hand holding him before leaning back in his seat. He looked around then, eyeing all the tall buildings he could see as if he could find the sniper who was going to shoot him. He let out a shaky breath before he spoke again. “So, when will it happen? When am I going to die?”

This caused Stanley to raise his eyebrows in a way that only he could, and Eddie was glad to see that look on his friend again. “For someone who grew up annoyingly neurotic, you’re oddly calm,” Stanley commented. “Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?”

Eddie couldn’t help himself when he let out a giggle. “I guess when Death is staring you right in your face and you really can’t avoid it, you just stop panicking about it. I mean, it’s not like I _can_ avoid it, right? Like, _literally._ I’m sitting in a public area, surrounded by tall buildings. A sniper can shoot me anytime.”

“Yeah, about that.” Stanley looked down at his watch, a small frown on his face as he bit his lip. Eddie knew that look. It was the kind of look Stanley got when he realised something was wrong, yet if he planned it right, he could get something good from it.

“What?” Eddie asked right away. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Stanley looked a little hesitant before he answered him. “It’s four past ten now.”

“And? What about it?”

“I was told to get you here before ten, because they'll shoot you at exactly ten o'clock. But it’s _already_ four past ten.”

Eddie immediately got what Stanley meant. It had been four minutes and he wasn't dead yet. Something was definitely wrong, and hopefully, it was in their favour. Eddie didn't want to get his hopes high, but he couldn't help himself when he asked—

"Do you think they're late?" Eddie asked in a small voice. "Are snipers often late?"

"How the fuck should I know?" Stanley replied dryly, looking both amused and exasperated in a way that only he could. "It's not like I had snipers shooting my best friends every day."

"Hahaha, very funny. Seriously, if we ever survive this, you should consider a career as comedian, you know.“

Then everything happened, all in the blink of an eye. One moment they were half-joking about their bleak situation, and the next thing Eddie knew there was a flash of obnoxious purple flying toward him and Stanley, tackling the both of them to the ground, and causing the people around them to scream. He felt his hip smarting at the harsh contact with the floor, and his breath was knocked out of his body when half of that same bright purple landed on top of him. It took Eddie a while to realise that the big, yellow ball of fury in his face was actually someone's head—some girl's head, to be precise. The girl looked like she was in her twenties, wearing a fluffy purple sweater that must have been the atrocious purple he’d seen. She was pretty small, even compared to Eddie’s average height. Before he could really comprehend what had happened though, the girl had moved off of him, and was now crouching over Stanley.

Stanley, whose light-blue shirt had a red stain on the chest, just an inch below his heart. Almost instantly, Eddie snapped back into focus, and he quickly went to check on his best friend. He nudged the girl aside with his shoulder, took off his suit jacket and used it to press on Stanley's wound. He could feel it getting wet from the blood much faster than he liked.

"You two stay right here, okay?" the girl said before heading off toward a man with a mullet, that Eddie assumed had tried to kill him, not giving Eddie a chance to answer her.

"Who the h-hell is that?" Stanley rasped, his face scrunching up in pain. "She... she looked f-familiar—_fuck_,_ it hurts_."

"Dunno, Stan. But just… stop talking, okay? Preserve your energy, and you'll be fine.“

"_You fucking bitch!_" mullet-man howled, and Eddie turned his head just in time to see the blonde pull a big knife back from where she'd swiped it across the man's chest, making a shallow gash.

"Yeah, yeah," the blonde drawled monotonously as she twirled the knife between her fingers. "I know what I am, shithead. And this bitch is gonna kill you."

Eddie didn't know whether Stanley saw what happened next, but Eddie felt his jaw drop as he watched the girl's lips tug into a familiar grin before throwing the knife forcefully at mullet-man, causing him to stagger backward. But Eddie was barely paying attention to what happened next in the fight between the two of them- because _that grin._ That fucking crooked, cheeky grin. He had seen that grin countless times in the past before, but on someone else's face. He'd seen it on the face of a boy he'd known since he was three, and who he’d grown up with, until the day they’d gone their separate ways after graduating high school. It was the grin that haunted his dreams every night, especially in the past fifteen years since he heard about the _tragedy_. He’d broken down when he realised that he would _never _see that grin ever again.

_("Eddie, my love, I love you so. How long I've waited for you, you'll never know. Please, Eddie, don't make me wait much longer. Eddie, please, write me one line...")_

It had been twenty years since they’d last talked, but Eddie could still hear _his_ voice.

Eddie was then snapped out of his reverie when he heard a loud crash coming from where the blonde and mullet-man were. Judging by the way she was pushing herself off of the floor, the man had just thrown her off of him. It didn’t seem to deter her though. The girl just shrugged it off, quite literally, and went to wrap her arms around the man's neck to help her launch herself on to the man's shoulder. The movement caught the man off-guard, so that he barely had time to blink before the girl sent a barrage of relentless punches at his face. This seemed to do the trick, because the man soon fell backward as he lost his consciousness, his face covered in blood and bruises. The girl was quick enough to jump off of him though, so he wouldn't bring her down with him. She spent about ten seconds eyeing the unconscious man until she was sure that he wouldn't wake up anytime soon. She gave a nod to herself once before turning to face Eddie and Stanley.

"Hi, sorry about that," the girl quipped in a cheerful tone, as if she hadn't just beaten the fuck out of a man twice her size. "That mullet-wearing asshole was one mean son of a bitch. Taking him down wasn't as easy as I expected it to be." She then took a quick glance at Stanley before she carefully pulled him off of the floor. It still hurt Stanley though, causing him to let out a pained cry that she answered with a sheepish look. "Sorry about that, man. But we have to get out of here before more of those assholes can come. I'm Sabina, by the way. Sabina Wilson."

"He-hello Sabina. I'm Stan...Stanley Uris," the accountant muttered, his short and erratic breathing nearly causing another Eddie to start hyperventilating himself. "This... this neurotic chihuahua is my friend Eddie Kasp- Kaspbrak."

“Fuck off, Uris,” Eddie snapped, though he could feel his lips tugging into a slight grin as he wrapped Stanley’s other arm around himself. “Trust you to suddenly have a sense of humour when we’re both about to die.”

Stanley huffed out harshly as both Sabina and Eddie started to drag him out of Starbucks, and Eddie couldn’t help but to wonder whether it was from his patented Condescending Uris Scoff, or because he was in so much pain. “My humour is always there, Edward. You just… you just never understand it.”

“As funny as your joke is, old man, no one’s dying on my watch,” Sabina said firmly, with a kind of determination that once again felt familiar. Eddie decided then to turn his attention onto her.

“I don’t mean to be rude, but who _are_ you, kid?” Eddie asked, scanning the girl’s features as if it would give him an answer as to _why _she looked so much like someone he knew. He felt a tug in his chest as he saw the way that her eyes glinted with mischief.

“Well, Mr Kaspbrak, as I’ve said before, my name—“

“_Don’t_ even think about it,” Eddie growled, realising his mistake immediately. “I fucking know that look on your face, young lady. I have seen it before on another person, and trust me, they were—“

Eddie’s words were cut short rather abruptly as Sabina pushed him to the side. This time though, she was pushing Stanley into his arms, setting the taller man’s whole weight on Eddie as she pulled out a gun from the back pocket of her leather pants—and pointed it straight at someone standing just five feet away from them. Eddie took one look at the calculating glare in Sabina’s eyes before he turned in the direction of her opponent. It was a man who was easily over six feet tall. He was dressed in all black, and if things had been different, Eddie would have chuckled at how cliché he was dressed. The man also had a gun in his hand, pointed straight at Sabina. With the gun half covering his face, Eddie didn’t immediately recognise who it was, especially with the hat covering the upper half of the man’s face. But when he got closer, there was no denying who he was. Eddie knew him. He would _always _know him. Even after all these years. It could have been twenty years or twenty _centuries_, but Eddie would still remember him.

_“Richie?”_


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been twenty two years since Richie last saw his best friends. And still he'll sacrifice his life for them. But with his secrets finally catching up to him, he just doesn't know whether he'll be able to or not

Back when Richie was a child, whenever anyone asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up, he would say a comedian. Then people would nod their heads and say that it was good that he wanted to be an actor. Richie would always correct them. Sure, being an actor was nice and all. But actors didn't always make people laugh. A _comedian_ did that. And all Richie wanted to do in life was make people laugh. That was his dream. He knew that his parents didn't really approve, but they weren't entirely against it either. Wentworth and Maggie Tozier might not be the perfect storybook parents, but they did love their son greatly. Even though they were busy with work most of the time, there was no denying that they would do anything for Richie. And if that meant supporting him and his risky choice of career, then so be it.

But then, Georgie Denbrough went missing, and everything changed.

_("When I'm finally out of here, I'll find away to avenge Georgie. I promise, Bill.")_

Richie had no idea how exactly it had happened, but he went through CIA training at eighteen, and by the time he was twenty-five, he had become one of their best agents.

"Yes, hello?" Richie said, answering the phone as he propped his Barrett M95 against the wall in front of him.

"Miles," the voice in his earpiece said, and Richie couldn't help himself from flinching at the fake name he'd chosen to be his for the past fifteen years. "I suppose you're already in position."

"Well yeah. You said I have to pop the guy at ten. So, I'm here before ten. But," Richie trailed a bit, sighing in annoyance because he knew he was going to have an argument that they'd already had countless times already. "You _know_ that you don't have to call me to check whether I'm doing my job or not. We've talked about this, man. You give me a job, and I’ll do it."

"I know," Lucian Pennywise replied calmly. "But this time, I need to be here. Well, figuratively, at least. Consider it moral support."

If the man hadn't practically saved Richie's life fifteen years ago, he'd long ago have blown Pennywise's head into a bloody pulp.

The man was fucking irritating.

"Fine. Just shut up and don't distract me. I can see your guy coming in now. The one in the light-blue shirt, right? By the way, next time make sure they’re wearing a more specific shirt. Fucker."

Richie had to give it to him; Pennywise did a great job ignoring his comment. “Yep, that’s the one. Don't kill him though. Kill his friend. The shorter one. He should be there soon."

The mercenary rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Shut up now. Someone's coming. I think it's him."

Pennywise was finally silent and Richie focused himself on his task. One look at his watch told him that he had about fifteen minutes before he was supposed to kill his target. He turned his attention back onto the man he was supposed to kill, who had taken a seat across from blue-shirt guy. Like Pennywise said, the target was shorter than his friend, even when he was sitting down. He was wearing a red polo shirt, which made it even easier for Richie to mark him because he stood out like a sore thumb. Richie had already set the rifle's focus onto the back of the target's head, and was just waiting for his alarm to beep, when his eyes caught the face of blue-shirt man.

Curly hair, high cheekbones and pointy nose. Richie couldn't see the man's eyes, but even from where he was, he knew that they would be dark brown, with a constantly sharp and calculating look in them. There was only one man that Richie knew who looked like that, and even if it had been years, he knew exactly who it was.

_("Of course I'll come to your bar mitzvah, Stanny! It's not every day your best friend becomes a proper Jewish adult and gets celebrated for finally owning up to their sins.")_

"The guy in the blue shirt," Richie said in his calmest, most quiet voice, even if it wavered a little at the end. "What is his name?"

"I beg your pardon?" Pennywise asked in return, sounding just the perfect amount of confused. But Richie knew better.

Pennywise was as brilliant an actor as he was a brilliant business man.

"_Goddammit, Lucian_," Richie snarled as he felt his patience wearing thin. "Don't you fucking play dumb with me. Tell me his fucking name!"

There was a beat of silence before he heard Pennywise's soft cackle. The sound sent a cold chill down Richie's spine.

"Oh, I think you already know, _Richie_."

Time felt like it was stopping around him. Richie had to take two quick, calming breaths before he spoke again. "What the _fuck_ did you just say, man?"

"Richard Wentworth Tozier," Pennywise said in a sing-song tone, and this time, when he cackled, it had gone up a notch in its insanity. "Fondly dubbed as Richie 'Trashmouth' Tozier by your friends. Only son to dentists Wentworth and Margaret Tozier, and younger brother to Olivia Margaret Tozier. Shall I continue?"

"How the hell—“

"I have my ways." Even without seeing him, Richie knew the man was smirking in that creepy way Richie had seen a couple of times before. "But don't you want to know _who_ your target is?"

Richie didn't have to ask. Nor did Pennywise have to supply him with a name. For the target had turned around, and now his face was in the focus of Richie's rifle. For the second time that day, time felt like it was stopping around him, and there was a ringing in his ears as his eyes zeroed in on the man's face. Richie knew him. More than he knew himself. His mind went through all the memories he had of the two of them back when they’d been children. The man looked older, but nothing much had changed in his face. Looking at him now, Richie still felt the urge to pinch his cheek and cry out _cute cute cute!_

_("Eddie, my love, I love you so. How long I've waited for you, you'll never know. Please, Eddie, don't make me wait much longer. Eddie, please, write me one line...")_

"You know him, don't you, Rich?" Pennywise practically hissed, a manic glee in his voice. "Better than you know the other one, I bet."

Richie growled under his breath and started to dismantle his gun. "_Fuck off_. I'm not doing this shit. You must be dumb as fuck if you thought I wouldn’t recognise my own friends."

"Richie, Richie, Richie… You think I didn’t know that? Buddy, I _knew_ that you were never going to do it. Just like I know that you're going to save them now. That's why I put Bowers there."

"You did _what_?" Richie snatched his binoculars from his bag, and true enough, he saw a familiar figure with a mullet making his way toward the two men.

Pennywise continued. "Henry Bowers might be… what did you say again? _Dumb as shit_, yeah, that’s it—but _hey_! At least Bowers is obedient. I know that he'll kill your friends before you can get—“

Richie hung up, yanked the bag with his rifle in it, and swung it over his shoulder before he made his way down the rooftop. Running as fast as he could, he punched the mute button to the other line he had that was connected, and immediately he yelled out, "_Kid!_ Did you hear all that?"

"Well, yeah," the new voice in his earpiece said, sounding a little distressed. "Fuck, man. We're in deep shit. What are we going to do about this?"

"We'll talk about that later. Now, I need you to get the car."

"Hold up. We're taking _them_ with us?"

"Yeah. See you in a few."

"Richie, wait—“

He cut off the call and barged out of the building, pushing past people who gave him a funny look at the way he practically ran through the door instead of opening it first. Richie didn't give a fuck. All he had in mind was to get across to the Starbucks, where he saw other customers and even the workers were running out from. He urged his feet to run even faster when his eye caught a small blonde fighting Henry Bowers, yet he still couldn’t see his target and his friend. There was something about the way she fought that seemed familiar to Richie, but he pushed the thought aside quickly. When he finally saw the two men again, the blonde had just taken Bowers down with her punches.

The three of them were soon making their way out of the café, walking closely together, with the blonde and Richie’s target helping blue-shirt guy. Richie skidded to a sudden stop when he saw the bloodstain on that blue-shirt, missing the man's heart just by a couple of inches. He only snapped out of it when the bell above the door rang as the blonde pushed it open, so that they could get out of the ruined establishment. Richie slowly approached them, his eyes never leaving the two men who were now bickering like the idiots he remembered them to be. If it weren't because of his training that was ingrained deep in his brain, he wouldn't have noticed the petite blonde noticing him. He was half-awed at the speed the girl showed, between shoving the two men aside and pulling her gun out at Richie. Again, he felt a sense of déja-vu at the familiarity of her movements, even as he pointed his own gun at her. Before either Richie or the blonde could say anything, his target had beat them to it.

"Richie?"

_("Richie? Richie, are you awake? Can I stay here with you tonight?")_

"Hey, Eds," Richie said carefully. He watched with fascination as a myriad of emotion flashed in those big, brown eyes.

Shock, disbelief, joy, disappointment, despair, and _rage_.

That last one came so strongly, the mercenary was mesmerised by the intensity of it. He was so captivated by the look in those eyes, that he was caught completely off-guard when Eddie Kaspbrak threw his fucking phone at him, with it landing right on Richie's forehead rather forcefully. The blonde let out a whistle at the sight, which faltered instantly when Eddie shot her a glare. Beside the shorter man, Stanley Uris snorted an amused chuckle, despite his injury.

"_'Hey, Eds'_? That's the best you can do? You fucking _asshole_!" Eddie yelled, shoving Stanley back into the blonde's arms before marching toward Richie. "And how many times do I have to tell you, dipshit? Do _not_ fucking call me 'Eds'!"

Richie didn't even have time to duck when Eddie gave him a mean right hook. He let the other man's fist sock him in the nose, and the force was enough to cause Richie to stagger back. It didn't hurt that much though, not when he compared it to the punches he was used to. He didn't even realise his nose was bleeding until a drop of it slipped into his mouth and he tasted the familiar coppery tang of it. And that made Richie laugh. A full-bodied, soul-relieving kind of laugh that brought tears to his eyes.

"Oh, how I’ve _missed_ you Eddie Spaghetti," he chuckled as he wiped the blood away. Even with Eddie glaring murderously at him, his fist clenched in a position to punch Richie again, he could only smile fondly at the shorter man.

"You fucking-”

Eddie's words were cut off abruptly by the screeching of tires, as a van skidded to a halt right in front of them. The front passenger door slammed open, revealing a young man around the blonde's age in the driver's seat. The young man raised an eyebrow at the scene in front of him, his eyes no doubt focused on the blood rolling down Richie's nose.

"What the fuck happened to you, Uncle?" he said, prompting Richie to roll his eyes in exaggeration. Deciding to be a wise adult for once, he went to Stanley's side and gently nudged the blonde aside so he could take care of his best friend.

"Shut up, Adrian," Richie grumbled, giving the younger man a warning glance that he obeyed grudgingly. Richie huffed a bit when Eddie suddenly let go of Stanley, which meant that he had to practically carry Stanley into the van because at that point, the man had lost too much blood. And while Stanley wasn’t as tall as Richie, he sure was pretty fucking heavy.

"_That's_ Adrian?" Eddie exclaimed in disbelief as he quickly helped Richie again, once he realised what he'd done. "_Little Adrian_? Libby's boy?"

"Fuck off, old man. You're not that much taller, you know," Adrian spat, pouting in a way that made him look even younger than his twenty-seven years. Richie allowed the split second his mind took to remember how enamoured seventeen-year-old Eddie was with newborn Adrian.

It was, and would always be, the cutest thing Richie had ever seen.

Before Eddie could retort, Richie quickly said, "Yep. That's Adrian Mellon, my nephew. Kid, I don’t suppose you remember them, so let me to introduce you to Eduardo and Stanthony. They’ve been my best friends since I was still cute… Right, now we’re through with that; Eds, you sit here with Stan, okay? Make sure he doesn't die."

"Y-you're hila...hilarious," Stanley spat, but it lacked much of the usual bite.

"Shut up, Uris," Eddie said, as he obediently went to sit beside their friend, one hand still pressed on Stanley's wound.

"Right. All set? Let's go—“

"Wait! I'm _not_ leaving without them, dude!" Blondie yelled, yanking Richie by his shoulder to turn him around just when he was about to close the door on Eddie and Stanley. "I have orders to take them somewhere safe. And if you think that I’ll just let you go, then you’re dumber than you look."

Richie aimed his most infuriating look of disinterest at her, hoping that she'd be insulted enough to leave. Crossing his arms as he cocked an eyebrow, he said, "That's exactly where I'm taking them. I appreciate what you did back there, but I can take it from here."

Whatever rude thing the blonde was going to say to him was cut off the moment Adrian peered at her over his shoulder. Richie couldn't really see, but he knew his nephew, so he could imagine his eyes widening into epic proportions as he yelled, "_Sabina?_ Sabina Wilson? _Gosh_, is that really you?"

The blonde turned toward the sound, and her jaw dropped in surprise. "Adrian? What the hell are you doing with this guy?"

Adrian shrugged. "The idiot happens to be my uncle. And oh, my mentor too."

"Watch it, kid," Richie said in a warning tone, glaring at Adrian.

"Oh, _wow_. I never thought I'd see the day Richie Tozier ended up scolding someone else for running their mouth," Eddie quipped sarcastically, earning a weak chuckle from a barely lucid Stanley. Richie turned to glare at his two friends.

"Get fucked, you fucking—“

"Did you just say he's Richie Tozier?" Sabina said, an unreadable look on her face now.

Eddie blinked once at the interruption. "Uh, yes. Yes, I did."

The girl turned to Richie then. "And you're _really_ him? Richie Tozier the CIA agent?"

"I'm sorry– he’s a _what_?"

"_Former_ agent," Richie said, ignoring Eddie's shocked outburst as he eyed Sabina closely. "How did you know that?"

Now that he’d gotten a proper look at her, she did seem familiar. Like, _a lot_. Had they met? Did he know her from somewhere?

She ignored him though. Nodding to herself, she suddenly got into the car, squeezing herself in on Stanley's other side. "Never mind that. All of you are coming with me. I'll tell you where we're headed as we go. But we need to leave now. My friends said we have twenty people coming in five."

"Now, hold up for a sec," Richie said, even as he got into the front passenger seat. "We're not going anywhere with you until you tell me exactly who the fuck you are."

"No time, man. Adrian, hit it."

"Don't do it, Adrian."

"Adrian, you believe me, right? Hit the fucking gas."

"Don't you dare, kid. Uncle or not, I’m still your fucking mentor so you—“

“Fucking floor it, Adrian!”

“You better lift your foot off the—“

"Goddammit— _Bex said hi_!"

_("Rebekah Montgomery speaking. If you're anyone other than Tozier, please leave a message after the beep. And if it's you, Rich, fuck off and please stop leaving me shit messages, you fucking prick.")_

“_Fuck,”_ Richie exhaled, running a shaky hand through his hair. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, _fuck!_”

“I’m sorry, but _who_ is Rebekah?” Eddie asked, which Richie ignored because he really didn’t feel like answering questions about his past yet.

_Another person you owe an explanation to, asshole,_ a voice in Richie’s head said, which annoyingly sounded like a thirteen year old Stanley Uris. Bastard was always the annoying voice of reason for Richie, literally and figuratively.

“Does that mean what I think it does?” Adrian asked Richie slowly, while eyeing the rear view mirror, where Richie could see that five cars were headed their way.

“Yeah, do as Blondie says. Go to wherever the fuck she directs us.”

Adrian clicked his tongue and shrugged. “Alright then. Everyone hold on. Expect getting shot at.”

Eddie gave a bewildered squeak, but no one responded to his shock. Adrian didn’t waste his time and quickly sped away in the direction Sabina gave them. It didn’t take long before the first round of bullets rained on them. Cursing under his breath, Richie reached under his seat for his M4A1, and checked the rounds in it before cocking it. He popped open the overhead window, ready to get out there so he could shoot at those motherfuckers. But then he noticed that Sabina seemed to be in a conversation with whomever it was she had speaking through her earpiece, the whole time looking for a refill for her Glock before cursing under her breath when she found out she had none. Richie took pity on her and threw her his own stash of bullets, earning a shocked look from her. When she opened her mouth, he knew that she was going to thank him, but he quickly cut her off with a curt nod of his head. The situation reminded him of his past, back when he knew another badass blonde who always had problems with not bringing an extra round of refill.

_(“Tozier, I’m out! Tozier! Tozier! Tozier, a little help!”)_

_(“Fucking hell, Bex! Here! Next time, don’t fucking forget it!”)_

He was going to get up once again, but something changed his mind. Turning toward the blonde, he tapped at his own ear, referring to her earpiece and said, “Is she talking to you right now?”

Sabina nodded her head stiffly, a little distracted as she was refilling her gun. “Yeah, she is. And I don’t know what the hell you’ve done to her, man, but she’s _pissed. _Like, royally.”

Stanley snorted a laugh then, despite his weakening condition. “Rich…Richie has always had that tal-talent. He always pisses…pisses off everyone.”

The blonde let out a chuckle that sounded _so__ fucking familiar._ “Is that so, man? Well, good luck on staying alive when you see her then.” She didn’t wait for a response before rolling her window down and starting to shoot at their incomings, at the same time Adrian made a sharp twist to avoid getting rammed by one of the thugs’ cars.

Richie rolled his eyes even as he felt his lips tug into a grin. “Fuck off, you two. Especially _you, _Stan Urine. Just try to stay alive, okay? Don’t you dare die in my fucking van, man.”

“W-will do, Trashmouth…”

“And Eddie?”

The man whipped his head around from watching the upcoming cars to look back at Richie, with his big doe-eyes. He looked so much like the thirteen year-old Richie used to protect from bullies when he said, “Yeah, Chee?”

_God, he’s still so fucking cute!_

“Keep your head down, and make sure the same goes for Stan. Try not to get shot while I’m shooting at those bastards.”

“Easier said than done, asshole,” Eddie spat, but judging from the way he bit his lip, Richie knew he was fighting back a grin.

“Well then.” He gave his best friends a wink before poking his head out of the overhead. “Talk to you again in a while, Losers. I have some motherfuckers to kill.”


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sabina learns about the man that her mentor values anyone else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to tell me what do you think of the story so far :D

The first time Sabina heard the name Richie Tozier, it was back when she was still training as an Angel. It was during her weekend break, just several months before she got her Tattoo and became a proper Angel. She was wandering around the compound as she nursed a mug of hot chocolate that Kay McCall had made her, when she walked past the compound’s bar and heard a loud crash. No-one was allowed to visit the bar unless it was the weekend, and even then they weren’t allowed to trash it in a drunken rage. So, Sabina thought it was only natural that she was curious. Someone had broken a rule after all. A rule that she, who was a former delinquent, had had to swear on her life _and _sign an actual legal agreement that she would never break. She had no idea whoever was on the other side of the door, but Sabina made sure she was ready to dodge rogue bottles when she pushed the door open.

Rebekah was in there, drunk out of her mind as she sobbed into Beverly Marsh’s arms.

Sabina had never met Beverly before that day, but she knew that she, along with Rebekah and Kay, used to be in a team together when they were around Sabina’s age. Before Rebekah became the first Bosley, before Beverly went off to retire and play at families with her husband, and before Kay decided that she was better off designing guns until the day the Saint came to replace her. During the months she’d trained under Rebekah, Sabina had only ever heard Beverly mentioned in passing, whenever she overheard Rebekah and Kay talk about their olden days. Therefore, seeing Beverly there was understandably a surprise for her. It was nothing as surprising as the fact that Rebekah was drunk though. In all the months Sabina had known her mentor, the older blonde was always poised and a little bit detached. She was always in perfect control of _everything._ Never, not in a million years, Sabina thought she’d see the day her mentor was a drunken, sobbing mess.

The short-haired blonde instantly felt bad that she’d walked in on such a private scene, so she quickly tried to leave the room. But that was when she heard Beverly mention _his _name.

“It’s been ten years, honey. I think it’s high time you moved on from Richie Tozier,” Beverly said patiently as she stroked Rebekah’s blonde locks. “You can’t keep this up anymore.”

Sabina didn’t hear Rebekah’s answer. She had left before she could. And she never mentioned anything about what she’d heard to Rebekah or anyone else. She hadn’t even thought about that day or the name Richie Tozier for a long, _long_ time.

Not until Eddie Kaspbrak said it.

Unfortunately, Rebekah overheard what Eddie had said through Sabina’s earpiece.

And she _wasn’t _happy about it.

_(“Motherfucker! Fucking— FUCK! Tell him when I see him, I’m going to wring him by his stupid neck and fling him across the room. That fucking _asswipe_! I’m going to fucking kill that tall asshole. And I’m gonna make his death so fucking painful he’s going to fucking regret – AH, I NEED MARSH! SOMEONE, FUCKING CALL BEVERLY MAR—“)_

Sabina had never heard Rebekah that angry before, not even last year, when they were dealing with the whole Bosley-Brok fiasco.

They managed to get to her team’s assigned HQ in what Sabina liked to consider record time, especially with Pennywise’s men on their tail. Luckily for everyone, Sabina had her bitches backing her up—not that she’d _ever _call Jane and Elena her bitches to their faces. Especially not in front of Jane. Elena might be okay with that, because unlike _some _people, the genius had humour. Jane, on the other hand? _Nope. _That tall, English brat would fucking punch Sabina in the face if she ever found out. The blonde didn’t have time to greet her friends though once they got to the HQ, because Eddie had started screaming that they were losing Stanley, and that was just _bad. _They were supposed to protect both men, and ask them questions as they did that. They couldn’t afford one of them dying. So before Adrian’s van had even stopped, Sabina had jumped out to tell the Saint to ready the med-bay. She didn’t even have time to be surprised when she found that the man had everything ready, with four of the Agency’s own doctors flanking him, all of them ready to do their work. Clearly Rebekah had told everyone about what had happened, despite her temper tantrum.

When Sabina went back out of the med-bay and to what essentially was the HQ’s lobby, Adrian and Jane had taken over the task of carrying Stanley from Eddie. When the blonde craned her neck to find the chemist, she found him on the floor just a few feet away from her, sitting between Richie’s legs. The former CIA agent was cupping Eddie's face in his hands, speaking softly as he pressed their heads together. She knew right away that Eddie was having a panic attack. After all, she’d had to calm Adrian down many times from his own panic attacks back when they were in high school. In fact, she found it rather weird that she and Richie handled their friends’ panic attacks in the same way. But, at the same time, she noticed there was something different in the way Richie held Eddie. There was a certain gentleness there, and a _loving _intimacy that Sabina and Adrian didn’t have. Sure, the feisty asthmatic idiot was her oldest and closest friend, someone she’d even call her _family._ However, it was clear that whatever Richie and Eddie had, it was different. She could see it in the way Eddie buried his face in the crook of Richie’s neck, in the way Richie curled protectively around the other man with one hand clasped at the back of Eddie’s neck.

“Oh, wow,” Elena breathed, who Sabina hadn’t realised had been standing beside her the whole time, her dark eyes glued on the intimate sight in front of them.

_‘Oh, wow’, indeed._

“They’re so disgustingly in love, I know,” Adrian’s voice came from Sabina’s other side, eyes also set on his uncle and said uncle’s _friend._ It was only then that Sabina realised that he and Jane had returned from dropping Stanley off at the med-bay. She noticed that Jane too was watching Richie and Eddie.

“You know about this?” Sabina asked her oldest friend, to which the young CIA agent responded with a mere shrug of his shoulders.

“I mean, I _know _that he’s been in love with someone for almost all the time I know him. I just didn’t know who the person was. Hell, I didn’t even know he was _gay._”

“He’s bisexual, although he _has _been in love with the same man for practically his whole life_._”

Sabina and her three friends jumped in surprise then, whipping around almost in unison to find Rebekah standing behind them with a blank look on her face. From the corner of her eyes, Sabina could see that Jane and Elena were surprised that Rebekah knew who Richie and Eddie were. Adrian was the only one who didn’t look surprised, and was watching Rebekah closely. If Rebekah felt bothered by it, she did a great job of ignoring him. Instead, she walked around the four of them and made her way toward Richie and Eddie. At the sound of her heels clicking against the floor, the two men slowly pulled away from each other. Eddie seemed to have recovered from his panic attack, and judging by the blush on his face, he’d finally realised that he’d had an audience the whole time. His eyes quickly found Rebekah’s figure coming toward him and Richie as he brought himself up onto his feet. When Richie offered him his hand, Eddie stiffly shook his head and took a step back. Sabina couldn’t see how Richie reacted to the rejection. The man had turned around at the same time Rebekah stopped right in front of him, blocking him from everyone’s view.

Before she sucker punched him on his nose.

“FUCK!” Richie yelled loudly, one hand holding his nose that had started to bleed for the second time that day. “_What the fuck, Bex?_ Didn’t you see I already got punched in the nose? You fucking lunatic.”

The furious growl Rebekah let out was almost inhuman, and Sabina felt chills run down her spine. “You should be grateful I didn’t kill you instead, _Tozier_. After that fucking _stunt _you pulled fifteen years ago, killing you would have been a mercy you don’t deserve, you fucking _dick._”

“Oh my God,” Eddie said before Richie could give a reply. He was looking back and forth between his tall friend and Rebekah before settling on Sabina’s mentor. “He pretended to have died on you too? I thought, since he turned out to be a former CIA agent, and I’m only a civilian, he only did that to me.”

“Nope,” Rebekah said, voice trembling a little in the telltale sign of her anger. “And I was there when he supposedly had died. I was in that fucking train we were trying to stop together when he threw me out and decided to be a _fucking hero._”

“If I hadn’t pushed you out, you would have died that day, Bex,” Richie said dryly as he wiped the blood off his face in an infuriating, nonchalant manner. “I had to choose between saving your life _or _having us both killed. It was an easy choice for me.”

“But you _didn’t _die, asshole!” Rebekah yelled. “Somehow, you managed to survive the crash and let us all live for the past fifteen years thinking you were dead. Fuck, with that fucking _nuclear bomb _in that train, I _know _you should have blown up into pieces! No, cross that. All of fucking _Chicago _should have blown up that day! What the fuck did you do?”

Richie muttered something that no one but Rebekah and Eddie, who were closest to him, could hear. And whatever it was, Sabina knew it was monumentally stupid because Rebekah looked she was itching to punch Richie again, and Eddie looked like he was going to have a heart attack.

“You did _what_?” Eddie exclaimed, stomping right into Richie’s space, physically turning the man around so they were face to face.

“I swallowed the bomb, okay?” Richie sighed, his tone awfully casual as if he were only talking about the weather. “I mean, it was only the size of a pill. So, I thought I’d just swallow it to prevent it from exploding when the train crashed.”

Sabina didn’t know whether she should be impressed or horrified.

Taking a glance at her mentor and her friends, all of them seemed just as shocked.

Not Eddie though.

He looked incredibly red in the face, his rage clearly visible in his eyes even from where Sabina was standing. He had one open palm over his right ear in a chopping motion as he stared at Richie in disbelief. “You swallowed… You fucking swallowed—WHAT THE ACTUAL _FUCK_, RICHIE? YOU SWALLOWED A _NUCLEAR _BOMB? ARE YOU FUCKING DUMB? NO, DON’T ANSWER THAT. I’VE ALWAYS KNOWN THAT DESPITE YOUR HIGH IQ, YOU _ARE _A FUCKING IDIOT. BUT, I DIDN’T THINK YOU WERE INSANE TOO!”

“Hold up!” Richie shouted, and he had the gall to look offended. “It worked, didn’t it? Nothing exploded! Well, except for the train. Which I managed to survive. Thankfully, only the locomotive blew up, and the bomb was in the car farthest from it when I got there. I _still _nearly died, yes, but I—“

“Tell me _one _good reason why you never told anyone that you’ve been alive all along,” Rebekah said, cutting Richie off. “Or else I’ll fucking take back what I said and stab you with my knife. Unfortunately, it's not going to be the knife _you _gave me as a birthday present. And _don’t _fucking lie about it, ‘cause I’ll know.”

Sabina knew _exactly _which knife her mentor was talking about, because that knife had been in her possession since the day she’d officially become an Angel.

_(“This knife was a birthday gift from the greatest person I’d ever had the honour to know. But I want you to have it. And remember to always be true to yourself. Remember why we’re Angels, kid.”)_

It was quite some time before Richie spoke again. The whole time he was silent and considering his answer, Sabina noticed how freakishly devoid of emotion he was. The blonde knew right then and there that he’d made a deal with the devil fifteen years ago when he let the world believe that he was dead, and that both Rebekah and Eddie wouldn’t like it. He was clenching his jaw so hard, Sabina was worried he’d break it by the time he finally spoke.

“Pennywise rescued me. Or rather, his men did. At the time, I didn’t really care why he’d rescued me, or why he was even there in the first place. I was in _so much pain._ I think I’d broken practically every bone in my body, and I did just swallow a pill-sized nuclear bomb. I wouldn’t recommend doing that to anyone, by the way. According to Pennywise’s doctors, the bomb was _literally _burning my insides up by the time they’d cut me open to get it out.”

Sabina couldn’t help herself when she shuddered involuntarily, and she could only imagine how fucking painful it must have been.

“How are you still alive then?” Eddie asked carefully, his big eyes widening to epic proportions, clearly horrified at the idea of the pain Richie had suffered. “If that was true, you could have died, Chee.”

Something about the way Eddie said his nickname made Richie relax as he gave the shorter man a small smile. “Actually, I _did_ die. Pennywise told me I died twice on the operating table. He said they had to give me this special drug to bring me back. It was kind of like an adrenaline shot, but safer and less risky and more… reliable.”

“He gave you my Spaghetti shot,” Eddie whispered, looking extremely pleased with himself as a wide smile took over the worried look on his face.

“I’m sorry, but did I hear that right?” Richie said. There was a mischievous grin on his face, which prompted a scowl from Eddie.

“It was a prototype that should have never been given to anyone, so forgive me for the horrible name. I was only given an hour to think of a name before I had to present it. They decided against mass-producing it though. It costed too much to manufacture it, surprisingly. Also, we couldn’t get the all-clear to have it tested on a human. So yeah.”

“Hate to point it out to you, but it doesn’t explain _why_ exactly you’ve named it that, Eds.”

“I _told _you, don’t fucking call me—“

“Richie, focus,” Rebekah said. “You haven’t told us why you didn’t tell anyone you’ve been alive this whole time.”

Richie sobered up and nodded solemnly. “Right. I’m sorry. Well, Pennywise threatened me. He said I had to work for him for twenty years at least, to repay his sodding kindness for saving my life, or else he’d go after people I care about. I never told him my real name, lest it would make it easier for him to find my family and friends. But I didn’t want to take any chances. I don’t mind dying, but I don’t think I can stand losing anyone I love. So yeah, I’ve been working for him for the past fifteen years, taking out people that have betrayed him. That was our agreement. I only killed people who had betrayed him. When he wanted to kill innocents, he gave the job to someone else.”

The way he said it was so flippant, but no one missed what he’d tried to say. Least of all Eddie, who was now looking up at Richie with fear and betrayal in his eyes.

“It was you,” Eddie said quietly. “You were the one who was supposed to kill me.”

It looked like it physically pained the mercenary when he nodded. When Eddie took a step away from him again, Richie quickly grabbed his hand and looked at his friend imploringly. “I couldn’t do it though. I promise you, Eds, I wouldn’t have shot you _or _Stan. When I realised it was you two, I told Pennywise I couldn’t do it. I _didn’t _want to do it. You know I'd rather die than hurt either of you.”

“So if it were somebody else, you’d have done it?” Eddie spat, his voice rising. “If someone else had found out about the child trafficking, someone other than me and Stan, you’d have killed them?”

“_Child trafficking?”_ Richie almost shouted, looking shocked and disgusted. “What do you mean ‘child trafficking’?”

Eddie yanked his hand out of Richie's. “I meant exactly what I said, you fuckwad. The reason why Pennywise wanted to get rid of me and Stanley was because we’d found out about his fucking disgusting dealings. For fuck’s sake, Chee; that monster kidnapped and sold children, and _you _would kill for him!”

“_No! _I swear to God, I didn’t know about it. I really didn’t. I told you what my job description entailed. That means I practically knew nothing of his business.”

Eddie snorted. “Yeah, you just did his dirty work when he needed you to. How can you know for sure that the people you killed betrayed him? You don’t care at all, do you? Christ, you’re just as bad as he is, Chee.”

“HEY!” Adrian yelled, positively livid as he marched toward Eddie. Sabina’s friend was even shorter than Eddie was, but at that moment, as he came to his uncle’s defence, the blonde had never seen him more terrifying. Eddie, to his credit, stood his ground against the younger man.

Richie tried to stop his nephew, one hand on Adrian’s shoulder as he said, “Adrian, stop it.”

But Sabina knew how stubborn her best and oldest friend was. And there was no stopping him when he put his mind to something. Especially if it was about people he cared about.

“Knock it off, Kaspbrak. You have _no idea _what he’s gone through all these years. You don’t know how _lonely _he was for ten years until I found him five years ago. You don’t know the torture he suffered every time he rejected an assignment because you just _don’t _say no to Pennywise. There are punishments, and they’re horrible. And contrary to what you’ve just accused him of, Richie _did _care. He always made sure he was doing it for the right reasons. But Pennywise…” Adrian let out a cold, mirthless chuckle then. “That bastard’s fucking crafty. He knew how to cover up the truth well. By the time Richie found out, sometimes it was too late. And he’s had to live with that knowledge, man. He has to live with the blood of the innocents he’s killed, because he cares too much about our family and his friends. He traded his soul and his humanity for the safety of his loved ones. So, don’t you fucking _dare_ say he’s as bad as Pennywise, because he’s _not. _And if I ever hear you say that again, _old man, _I’m going to stick my foot up your a—“

“That’s enough, kid,” Richie said warningly. “I appreciate you defending my honour, but I thought we’ve talked about this.”

Adrian looked like he was going to argue, but one look from Richie, and he wisely kept his mouth shut. He did let out a loud and dramatic sigh however, before he spoke again. “Okay. I get it. We’re not telling anyone the truth about you because we want them to keep thinking you’re a major assho—“

“_Adrian.”_

If possible, the younger man’s scowl deepened, but this time, he really did keep quiet. But that didn’t mean he didn’t send a nasty glower at Eddie, who looked embarrassed and contrite. He opened and closed his mouth, his eyes never leaving Richie. But it looked like Richie was done talking to him, and had now turned his attention to the untied laces of Adrian’s left shoe. This caused a stifling and awkward silence between all of them, one that Sabina was desperate to break, because she could never deal with that kind of situation. Judging from the look on his face, Richie seemed to feel the same way, although he understandably refused to be the one to break the silence. Therefore, when Rebekah spoke, her tone small and careful, Sabina saw that Richie was as relieved as she was.

“Did you ever wonder how convenient it was that he saved you _just _when you planned on leaving the CIA?” Rebekah asked Richie. “I mean, it all happened just a couple of months after you told me that you wanted out. Even if he really didn’t know who you were, it still was one hell of a coincidence.”

“Oh yeah, I think he’s known all along who I really am,” Richie replied. “I mean, he just told me about it today. Said he’s always known. And maybe I _did _wonder how convenient it was? But back then, I really was dumb, and much too impulsive for my own good. All I could think about was how I’d gotten out from one prison and into another. And this time, it was at the cost of the lives of my loved ones. I couldn’t think of anything else but to make sure I kept him happy while the whole time never really losing my humanity.”

Rebekah hummed as she considered Richie’s answer. She’d just opened her mouth to say something, when they heard the sounds of people coming. Sabina instantly recognised two of the voices as Beverly’s and Kay’s. There were two other voices though. One of them was a woman, and the other was a child. When Beverly and Kay finally came into view with their two guests, Sabina heard Eddie let out a gasp. The woman alongside the two former Angels was holding the hand of a boy who looked to be around ten. The moment she noticed that Eddie was there, she quickly ran toward him. Judging from the way the woman kept on asking about Stanley, it didn’t take Sabina long to figure out that she was Mrs Uris, and the little munchkin that was now in Eddie’s arms was Uris junior. Eddie was begging the woman, whom he called Patty, to forgive him for what had happened to Stanley. Tears were streaming profusely from his eyes, and with one look at Richie, Sabina could tell that it was taking all of the his willpower to _not _give the other man a comforting hug.

“…stop it, Eddie,” Patty said sternly through her tears when Eddie kept blaming himself. “What happened today- it’s not your fault. If anything, according to what I’ve learned from Miss Marsh and Miss McCall on my way here, it was Stan’s fault. But I refuse to blame either of you because really, the real blame falls on that fucker Pennywise.”

“Yes, but still though. _I _was the one who was supposed to die. Not Stan—“ Eddie stopped abruptly in mid-sentence, his mind seeming to catch onto something Patty had said. Looking over his best friend’s wife’s shoulder, he gasped as his eyes landed on where Beverly was standing.

Beverly, whose whole attention was set on Richie, was glaring furiously at him. It looked hilarious, because when Adrian noticed what the redheaded former Angel was doing, he immediately stood protectively in front of Richie, as if using his much shorter body to shield his uncle from Beverly’s hatred. Richie himself merely rolled his eyes at Beverly, which no doubt angered the redheaded woman even more. Eddie didn’t seem to notice it though, as he was still gaping at Beverly. He passed the boy in his arms back to the boy’s mother, and took a step toward where the former Angel was.

_“Bev?”_ Eddie called out. “What are you doing here?”

Finally taking her attention off of Richie, Beverly gave Eddie a sheepish smile and waved at him. “Ah, right. Hi, Eddie. I’m here because… because I used to work here?”

Eddie lifted an eyebrow as he crossed his arms together. “And where is ‘here’ exactly? And if you literally give me the address, I’m going to fucking _flip_.”

Sabina thought Beverly wasn’t going to answer Eddie. But she was proved wrong when the former Angel shrugged and told him. “Townsend Detective Agency. I used to work here as an Agent. I retired about seven years ago though, not long after I met Ben on what would be my last mission. I was supposed to protect him, but then we also fell in love. The rest is history.”

Eddie’s voice was barely audible when he spoke next. “Be honest with me, Bev. Did you befriend me because _I _was your mission too?”

The look on Beverly’s face was so sad, it was obvious what her answer really was. “Eddie, you’re my friend. You’re my _best _friend. And I want you to listen—“

“TELL ME, BEV!”

Beverly swallowed heavily before she answered him. “You’re not my mission, Eddie. You’re a _favour_ I owe to a friend. But I swear, I’ve always loved our friendship—EDDIE!“

Beverly screaming out Eddie’s name was the only warning anyone had when the man suddenly swayed on his feet. Sabina only saw a blur of black going toward Eddie, but she didn’t really realise that it was Richie who had gone to other man’s side. She hadn’t even seen him move at all. One moment Richie was standing about five feet away from Eddie, then next thing anyone knew, the mercenary was already holding a trembling Eddie in his arms. It was all very sweet really. Even after all the horrible things Eddie had yelled at him, it was clear to see that he was still Richie’s top priority. Beside her, Jane and Elena cooed at how romantic it was. Sabina wasn’t as naïve as her two friends—after all, she’d been _married _before. But she did find Richie and Eddie so fucking adorable, and now she felt like she had to kick someone’s ass just to feel badass again. The blonde was just about to say that to her friends, when she caught the look on her mentor’s face. Rebekah was watching Richie following Beverly into one of the many empty bedrooms in the HQ with Eddie in his arms. As per usual, the older blonde looked as poised as always. But Sabina knew better. She could tell that the longer Rebekah looked at Richie’s retreating back, the more her heart broke.

Sabina finally realised what had pushed Rebekah into her drunken fit all those years ago.

She finally realised why the former Angel was so furious when she found out Richie had been alive after all, for the past fifteen years.

_(“It’s high time you moved on from Richie Tozier.”)_

_(“The greatest_ _person I’d ever had the honour to know.”)_

That was the moment Sabina decided, in a fit of immature protectiveness and blind loyalty toward the woman who was more a mother to her than her actual one, that she would hate Richie Tozier until the day she died.


	5. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There were four of them, and Rebekah's trying to remember their names.

There were four of them. That was what _he’d _always said. Four boys who had been friends since they were in pre-school. Four friends who were so different yet managed to complete each other like pieces from a puzzle. Four children who went up against something far too big for them at such a young age.

There were four of them, and their names were Stanley Uris, Eddie Kaspbrak, Richie Tozier, and um… _Fuck. _Who was that last one again? The one with the stutter?

“Rebekah.”

Damn it. She would have to ask _him _about it later.

Anyways…

“Rebekah.”

There were four of them, and three happened to work for Pennywise. Coincidence? Doubtful. Fucking impossible. So, there was a big chance that the last one might be working for the fucking creep too. Huh. Might have to get Elena to crack into the employee records.

But what the fuck was the name—

_“Rebekah!”_

The blonde blinked, her best friend’s voice bringing her back out of her reverie. Beverly was in front of her, and her green eyes were filled with worry. Thankfully she said nothing, even though Rebekah knew how her friend had _a__ lot _to ask. That was just how Beverly was, and Rebekah was grateful for it. The ginger always knew what to do, and how to treat people the way they wanted. Although she was a couple of years older, Rebekah always felt like Beverly was the wiser and more mature one in their little family. They’d met long before they were grouped together with Kay, the last member in their trio. Being a former CIA agent, Rebekah’s training didn’t take as long as the other newbies’ did, and soon she was recruited to help the training program. Beverly was her first ever mentee, despite Rebekah’s own status as a candidate for the Angel program. Their two-year age gap made them close friends, rather than just mentor and mentee. Then John Bosley put them into a group with Kay, who was a karate athlete, and the rest was history. Since their initiation, it had always been the three of them against _literally _the whole world. Growing up in an orphanage, it was with her trio that Rebekah ever felt for the first time what it was like to have a family.

Well, the _second _time if she had to count _Richie fucking Tozier. _But the man was an asshole, so.

“Hey, did I lose you again, hun?”

Rebekah shook her head and smiled. “Nah, I’m good… Where are the girls, by the way?”

If there was anything in the world that would surely guarantee Rebekah’s good mood, it was her girls. Beverly knew that, and she kindly supplied the blonde with a detailed answer.

“Jane is with Patty Uris in the guest bedroom, keeping her company as they wait for Stanley to wake up. Elena is becoming fast friends with Adrian Mellon because it turns out he’s just as much of a geek as she is. And Sabina’s taking little Robbie to the training grounds. No worries though!” Beverly quickly added at the reprimanding look Rebekah was aware she was sporting. “Kay and I made sure that the whole place is perfectly child-proof. Besides, have a little faith in her. She knows what to do. She’s not a child, remember?”

Rebekah sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I do. Really. It’s just… I love that girl, but sometimes I feel like she intentionally tries to make me age prematurely with her recklessness.”

Beverly clicked her tongue disapprovingly. “Oh, come on! I’ve only met Sabina a couple of times, but even _I _know she’s not that bad. She’s a big girl. She can take care of herself.”

“Yeah, well, doesn’t mean I can’t worry about her though. You know I just can’t help it.”

An image of Sabina lying on a bed two years ago during the whole thing with John Bosley, covered in bruises and bleeding in many places, came to the forefront of Rebekah’s mind all of a sudden. When their office building in Morocco had exploded, right before Rebekah was shot by Bosley and saw Elena get tricked into coming with that stinking traitor, Rebekah felt the kind of anguish she had only felt twice in her whole forty-years of life. She loved all her girls dearly, she really did. But she would be lying if she said she didn’t care about Sabina a little bit more. Hell, she knew how _everyone_in the Agency whispered behind her back that Sabina might as well as become Rebekah’s adopted daughter. To witness what she’d assumed was the demise of her favourite girl… it had nearly destroyed her. Rebekah had half a mind to just… _follow _her. She’d had nothing to lose after all. But then she thought about how _Richie_would have been so fucking disappointed in her, so she changed her mind.

Thank fuck she hadn’t followed through with her initial dramatic decision, since it turned out that Sabina was alive after all, albeit bruised up and bleeding.

It seemed that resilience was a trait Toziers had running in their veins.

_(“I faced a murderous psychopath at age thirteen, darling. It would take _a lot _to get rid of me.”)_

How fucking right he’d been. Even a nuclear bomb couldn’t kill him.

“So, that was Richie Tozier,” Beverly began slowly, her tone extra careful. Rebekah could feel Beverly’s smart, green eyes watching her closely.

“Uh huh,” the blonde hummed in the affirmative, making a point to avoid Beverly’s eyes. It was a full ten seconds before the ginger spoke again.

“You know, I was expecting someone a lot… _chattier_. You always said that he ran his mouth all the time. Hence the nickname Trashmouth.”

“Well, it’s been fifteen years since I last saw him. Obviously he’s changed.”

“Hmm, that’s true. Not to mention, he did spend those years working under a psychopath.”

Rebekah had no idea how she was supposed to respond to that, so she kept quiet and merely shrugged. They fell into another lengthy silence, this time even more awkward than before. They were in Rebekah’s room, so technically, if she _really _wanted to, she could just kick Beverly out for getting on her nerves. But that would be rude, and even though she’d been raised in an orphanage, Rebekah was a stickler for manners. After all, she’d been friends with Richie for years, who weirdly had the best manners around when he wasn’t acting out like a douchie dweeb. His upper-class upbringing, as the son of two respectable dentists, simply wouldn’t allow him to forget to keep his back straight and his elbows at the same level during a fancy dinner. Ironically, when he was drunk, Richie’s manners improved even more. Rebekah had seen plenty of times how fucking gentlemanly he could be when he was drunk. It was almost as if being inebriated rendered the man completely incapable of making an effort to pretend that he wasn’t a silver-spoon brat.

Something that Rebekah knew for a fact was an issue with Sabina too, which irritated the hell out of the petite blonde to the point where she’d go into a pissy mood.

“How long have you known about it?” Beverly asked, once again dragging Rebekah out of her thoughts. The blonde was a little caught off-guard with the question, but there was no doubt in her mind what Beverly was talking about.

It didn’t mean that she wanted to admit it though. The last thing that Rebekah wanted was to answer Beverly’s questions and explain herself.

“Known about what?” she asked in return with enough faux-innocence, she hoped.

Beverly rolled her eyes in exasperation at her response. “Don’t do that to me, Rebekah. We both know _exactly_ what it was that you knew about. Or should I just outright say it and ask how long have you known that Sabina is Richie Tozier’s _daughter_?”

“_Fuck off,_” Rebekah spat out, aiming her meanest glare at the ginger, who merely stared at her in a bored manner. “Why don’t _you_ tell me how the fuck _you_ know about it?”

“Oh, I can you give you a fucking list.” With a flourish, Beverly lifted both hands to prove her point. “One, they both like to run their mouth, even in the most inappropriate situations. Two, those clear-blue eyes are much too unique for it to be a mere coincidence that they both have them. Three, I haven’t really checked their medical records yet but even a blind man can see they both have ADHD. Four, also another unchecked thing which I’ll have to rectify later, but I’ve been told that the both of them are _excellent _at doing accents and voices. Five, although this is completely unrelated, you _did _ask me ten years ago to watch over the love of his fucking life. Six, and probably the most important one, I saw the way you looked at the both of them.”

“And how exactly did I look at them?”

“Like one of them was the man who had broke your heart, and the other was daughter you wished you two had had together.”

_ **CLANG!** _

“PLEASE, DON’T KILL ME!”

Rebekah’s hand was shaking hard when she lowered the gun she was holding, and her heart felt like it was beating faster than a race car, as she looked at a terrified-looking Elena. Beside her, Beverly was doing the same thing, before going off furiously at the former scientist, who kept on apologising profusely. Rebekah was barely paying attention to either Angel. All she could think about was how _Elena_might have overheard her conversation with Beverly. The girl might be a genius and all around the sweetest person Rebekah had ever met, but sometimes her tendency to let slip things she didn’t mean made Rebekah question her intelligence. The fact that Sabina had many times called Elena her _bestest friend _because they _always _told each other everything caused a crippling fear to fill Rebekah’s whole being.

If Elena knew, Sabina would know too.

And if Sabina knew that Rebekah had _always _known_, _she would hate it.

_She would hate Rebekah._

“What the _fuck _were you doing?” Rebekah said in a low tone, cutting off Elena’s apologetic rant in an instant. The blonde former Angel slowly stalked forward, her fear turning to anger as she got closer to Elena. “Were you _eavesdropping_ on me, Houghlin?”

Elena’s already-big eyes widened to epic proportions as she shook her head frantically. “_No, of course not, Boz!_ I- I swear to God, I wasn’t eavesdropping. Kay told me to get you and Beverly because Mr Tozier wanted to talk to us all about Pennywise. But the handle was a little stuck, so I had to use a bit of force. I didn’t know the door would fly open like that. _Boz, I’m sorry!_”

“Rebekah, calm down,” Beverly said, softly and a little warily, and only then did Rebekah realise how she was crowding Elena, noticed how the girl was about to faint from fear. Taking a deep breath, Rebekah went to grab her best friend’s hand for comfort. She was grateful when Beverly squeezed it gently, her thumb stroking Rebekah’s knuckles.

“Alright, I believe you,” Rebekah said as she gave Elena a small smile to show her that she wasn’t mad anymore. But she still looked at the girl seriously when she spoke next. “Before we go though, tell me what you overheard. And I want the truth.”

There was a small frown on Elena’s face when she answered Rebekah. “Something about a daughter? I… I don’t know, Boz. I really didn’t catch whatever it was you and Beverly said.”

Elena didn’t hear it. She didn’t know.

Rebekah’s secret was _still_safe.

It felt like being relieved of a huge burden. She let out a heavy sigh and led her friend and mentee out of her room. “Alright then. Come on, let’s see what that _idiot_ wants to talk about.”

Elena directed Rebekah and Beverly to the med-bay, where she found that they were the last ones to arrive there. Stanley was already awake, although it was clear to see that he was still a little bit dazed from the painkillers. But he managed a bright smile as he listened to his son reporting whatever shenanigans Sabina had pulled him into, so Rebekah figured he’d recover fully in no time. Sitting on a chair beside Stanley’s bed was Patty, who held Robbie on her lap with one hand, while her other hand was gripping Stanley’s. She was watching Stanley closely, as if she still couldn’t believe that she could keep him after everything that had happened. Rebekah knew the feeling. She understood. After all, it took everything in her power not to turn her head to the corner of the room, where she knew Richie was standing unnaturally quiet with Adrian beside him. Rebekah’s heart clenched when she noticed how Richie was watching Eddie closely, who had opted to stand with Sabina and Jane flanking him.

_You okay? _Rebekah felt Beverly tap onto the back of her hand. The blonde gave her friend a small smile as a response, which she knew Beverly didn’t believe at all. But the redhead graciously let it be. When Kay joined them all, standing beside Elena, was when Rebekah decided they were ready to start their sort-of-meeting. She looked at Beverly, who gave a supportive nod, and then addressed Stanley first. “Good to see you’re awake, Mr Uris. How are you feeling?”

“I’ve been better, I’m not gonna lie,” Stanley replied, his lips curling slightly into a smile that was both cheeky and polite. “And please, call me Stanley. You guys have saved my life. I think we’re past formalities at this point.”

“Right, about that,” Sabina interjected. She looked sheepish as she ran a nervous hand through her short hair. “Terribly sorry that I wasn’t quick enough to push you out of harm’s way. In my defence, I _did _have to save two grown men’s assess from—“

“Sabina?” Jane cut in, a saccharine smile on her face as she effectively shut her friend up.

“Yeah?” the feisty blonde said, having the gall to actually look annoyed that Jane had interrupted her.

“Shut the fuck up, okay? No one needs to hear you running your mouth right now.”

Sabina glared at Jane, who merely cocked her eyebrows in a challenging manner. “I thought _you’re _all about fucking manners, Jane. Isn’t that what they taught you in finishing school?”

Now it was Jane’s turn to glare at Sabina. “_Excuse_ _me_? Between the two of us, who’s actually rich enough to go to a finishing school? Who would know how to ride a fucking horse and which fucking spoon to use in a formal dinner?”

“Oh, you’re _really _going there, Kano? Little Miss CIA and her fancy British training?”

“I told you, _don’t _fucking call me that. I’m only five years younger than you. And I’m like, twice your size, Wilson.”

“You’re a fucking giant, that’s what you are. A disrespectful, brattish _giant.”_

“Hah, that’s real mature. Aren’t you supposed to be the oldest of the three of us? Gosh, you’re so fucking _childish!_ I can’t believe you’re actually older than sweet, naïve, _innocent _Elena over there.”

“Hey, leave me out of your—“

“How _dare_ you drag my best friend into this, you tall jerk. Elena has done nothing to you!”

“_Your _best friend? I met her first! If anything, she’s _my _best friend!”

“_Nu-uh!_ Everyone and their mother know I’m her favourite. I’m the fun, interesting one. You’re the fucking boring, stick-in-the-mud. She definitely prefers me over you.”

“You know what, I am _so _going to pu—“

“_Girls_,” Rebekah said firmly, which made Jane and Sabina fall quiet instantly. Both Angels turned to look at Rebekah, looking equally ashamed and sheepish. Sighing heavily, Rebekah continued. “As entertaining as this is, which it is _not,__ by the way,_I don’t think our guests here appreciate you two yelling at each other like immature children. So quit it.”

“Right. Sorry, Boz,” Jane muttered.

“Yeah, what she said,” Sabina added before turning her attention to look at Stanley. “And you too, Stanley. Sorry about that.”

“It’s okay, Sabina,” Stanley said, an amused look on his face as his lips pulled into a small grin. Rebekah noticed that he made a fleeting glance at both Richie and Eddie, who both made a point of looking at their feet. For some reason, it made the accountant laugh. “Frankly, all I really care about right now is that I’m still alive.”

It made Sabina grin as well. “I understand. Nearly dying usually puts your priorities straight.”

“You would know, of course,” Jane scoffed, although it lacked the usual tinge of annoyance. Rebekah knew she was thinking back about the whole thing with Brok. As a response, Sabina winked and gave her hand a quick pat.

At this, Stanley’s grin widened. He looked back at his friends and said, “Don’t they remind you two of _another _couple, Rich? Eddie?”

“Oh, we’re not a couple—“

“What the _fuck’s _that supposed to mean, Uris?” Richie drawled, cutting off Jane mid-sentence and giving his friend a murderous glare. Stanley merely stared right back at him.

“You know _exactly _what I mean, Richie,” the accountant replied.

“Nope. I literally have no idea. I think you’re losing your mind, Staniel. Probably because all of the _boring _accounting stuff you’ve been doing all these years.”

“Say whatever you want, man. We both know the truth.”

“And I stand by what I said. You’re fucking nuts.”

“That’s not what you said, Rich.”

“Whatever, asshole—“

“You really haven’t changed much, have you, Chee?”

Richie’s silence brought everyone to fall quiet with him. Eddie finally broke the silence with a small sound, and was eyeing Richie closely. Rebekah couldn’t help but to notice the way Richie’s whole being practically leaned in the direction of Eddie, his blue eyes also looking closely at him. “What do you mean, Eds?”

Eddie shrugged, the movement a little stiff. “Well, surely you have changed. You don’t talk nearly as much as you used to anymore. But you’re still _you._”

Richie tilted his head to the side and bit his lip, looking hopeful. “Is that a good or bad thing?”

For the second time, Eddie shrugged. But this time, Rebekah could see he was fighting back what she assumed to be a smile. He didn’t give an answer though, and instead changed the topic all together. “Richie here said that it couldn’t be a coincidence that three of us worked for Pennywise. So, it only makes sense if Bill works for the psycho as well.”

_I was right!_

“Bill who?” Beverly asked, already nodding at Elena to hack into Pennywise’s system, to get the list of employees who worked there.

“Denbrough,” Stanley answered. He turned to look at Richie for confirmation, who nodded darkly. “There used to be four of us, but we all went our separate ways after high school.”

“In the end, three of you ended up here in New York though,” Rebekah said. “And I have a feeling that Trashmouth’s right, that Denbrough’s working for Pennywise too.”

Richie let out a giggle then. “You know what, Bex; it’s been a _long _time since anyone called be Trashmouth.”

“Well, whose fault is that?” Rebekah retorted, forcing back the memory of the last time she’d seen him—because _she _was the one who’d last called him by that name.

“Let’s not start another argument, children,” Beverly scolded lightly. There was a tiny smirk on her face, and Rebekah made a mental note to punch her later.

“Yeah, Bex. Listen to your friend,” Richie quipped childishly. “Besides, you know I’m _always _right. That’s why we were such a great team.”

“_Were_ being the keyword, asshole.”

“Oh, I missed you too, Bex.”

“I got it!” Elena exclaimed, looking up with a big smile that belied her actual age. “William Denbrough, Head of PR for Pennywise Incorporated. He’s been with the company for even longer than Stanley.”

“Good work, Elena,” Sabina said, ruffling the younger Angel’s hair fondly. Rebekah curiously noted the way Jane frowned at the gesture. But she didn’t think much about it, because Sabina was already talking again. “Boz, permission to pick Mr Denbrough up? We have his address here.”

“Alright,” Rebekah said. “Be careful, though. Follow the protocols and _don’t _make rash decisions.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Sabina said, a big grin on her face, before dragging her friends with her. Unfortunately, that didn’t settle Rebekah’s worries at all. She still had her eyes on the girls’ retreating figure when she felt Richie’s presence beside her.

“Don’t worry, Bex,” the man said as he gently patted her by the elbow. “Adrian and I are coming with them. We’ll make sure none of them are harmed. Come on, kid.”

“Wait, _what_?” Rebekah yelped in unison with Eddie, who looked just as shocked she was. But that didn’t stop Richie from leaving, giving the room a wink as he went in the direction Rebekah’s Angels had just gone, Adrian trailing behind him.

For some reason, the knowledge that Sabina had Richie as backup only made alarm bells ring louder in Rebekah’s head.


	6. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie and Stanley discuss the secret the big secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wow, this took a while to update. I'm sorry about that. It's all my fault for writing a million stories at once. Thanks to Oksana Polastri, as always, for editing my mistakes. I don't know what I'd do without you <3 And Happy Clownversary! :D

Eddie wasn’t stupid.

He was actually really smart. After all, he had two PhDs that could validate this claim. Sure, he probably didn’t have superior IQ like Richie fucking Tozier, but Eddie was definitely smarter than most people he knew. He could even say that he was smarter than Bill Denbrough, and at least as smart as Stanley Uris. And, out of the four of them, he was the one that really knew about science and shit. So, it didn’t take him long to figure out the _exact _reason why Rebekah Montgomery couldn’t stop throwing glances between Richie _and _her protégée, Sabina Wilson. Eddie could see it. The signs probably weren’t that obvious for most people, but not to Eddie. He could see it easily. He could see the resemblance between Richie and Sabina. He could see that they were related.

It was clear to him now why the girl’s pale-blue eyes had looked so familiar to him.

And Eddie knew exactly who the girl’s mother was.

_(“NO! STOP! DON’T TOUCH ME! _PLEASE_, STOP!”)_

_(“Hey, hey, hey! Ripsom, I’m not— we’re not going to hurt you. We’re not _him, _okay? It’s me.”)_

It was uncanny how much Sabina and her mother looked alike.

“How long have you known the girl, Miss Montgomery?”

Apparently, Eddie wasn’t the only one who had noticed.

They were still at the med-bay after the girls had left with Richie and Adrian. Eddie was half-listening to Patty talking about how she was attacked when she was picking up Robbie, before Beverly and her friend Kay McCall had rescued them. Part of his attention, however, was focused on the blonde Beverly was talking to in hushed tones. The woman they all called Rebekah Montgomery, whom Eddie figured was a sort of handler. The more he looked at her, the more he realised that he _had _seen her before. He remembered seeing her ten years ago, at what was supposed to be Richie’s funeral. She’d looked significantly younger then, and less weary too, but there was no mistaking those sharp eyes of hers. The way she moved and talked kind of reminded Eddie of his old friend Bill, which was probably the reason why Richie got along really well with her. There _was _a time when Eddie used to be jealous of Bill because of how close he was with Richie. The woman was just about to leave the room, excusing herself curtly as she turned, with Beverly right beside her, when Stanley opened his mouth.

If Stanley’s question caught her off guard, she did a really great job hiding it.

“I’m afraid you’ll have to specify which girl you’re talking about,” Rebekah said, a cold smile on her pretty face. “As you know already, we are a predominantly female spy agency. We have a lot of girls here with us.”

“Huh. Didn’t think you’d be one to play dumb,” Stanley drawled, undeterred. “But okay. I’ll play along. I’m talking about Sabina Wilson. Or, shall I say, _Richie’s daughter_?”

Rebekah didn’t even blink when she replied, “Oh, she’s Richie’s daughter? Well, I did not know that. I’ve only been her mentor since she joined the agency five years ago.”

Stanley, for his part, didn’t relent. It was impressive, although not at all surprising. Stanley had always been stubborn as a rock. That was part of the reason why he was the only person Richie would listen to. Ignoring the rest of them who were watching the interaction closely, Stanley continued. “Richie always likes his girls blonde and quiet. Because that’s the complete opposite of Eddie. The more different they are, the better it is for him. I mean, I’m sure you know about Betty Ripsom, don’t you, _Rebekah_?”

Rebekah’s calm façade broke for the first time as she glared stonily at Stanley. Crossing her arms across her chest, she said, “Of course, I do know about Ripsom. Unlike you, I was actually there for him when he left Derry to join the CIA, after his so-called friends abandoned him. Even though the four of you _swore _that you’d always be together no matter what.”

Eddie felt like he’d been slapped in the face. Rebekah might be glaring at Stanley as she spoke, but everyone who knew Richie knew that she was aiming her words at _him. _At Eddie. Because it was Eddie who’d first turned his back on Richie. After his mother found out about their relationship, Eddie broke up with Richie and started to avoid him like the plague. This created a rift in their group of friends, with Bill on Eddie’s side and Stanley on Richie’s. Then Betty Ripsom, who’d had a crush on Richie since the four of them had rescued her that day in the sewers, had started to hang around with Richie more. She was actually one of the nicest girls at school, unlike Greeta Keene and her pack of vindictive bitches, and it made it harder for Eddie to hate her. When Richie and Betty officially became a couple, that was when the intense friendship between the four friends truly ended. Eddie was going to NYU with Bill, and Richie was going to Stanford with Stanley _and _Betty.

But obviously that didn’t happen. Stanley moved to Georgia on the last day of their finals, because his Grandma Uris passed away and left the family home to her son. Just a week later, Bill moved to London with his mother after his parents’ divorce. Then Betty and her whole family suddenly moved away a week before graduation. And of course, when Sonia Kaspbrak noticed that the only one of her son’s friends that was still left in Derry happened to be ‘that _filthy _Tozier boy’, she decided that they needed to push forward their move to New York. She took Eddie away in the middle of the night, before Eddie could even think of a way to say goodbye to Richie. At the time, he’d figured that it was for the best he didn’t say anything, since they hadn’t been talking for six months. But then, five years later, Eddie got a call from Libby Mellon née Tozier, who’d somehow managed to find his number, and Eddie realised how wrong he had been.

_(“Eddie Kaspbrak speaking. Who is this?”)_

_(“Hi, Eddie. It’s Libby. My brother’s dead. Wanna come to the funeral?”)_

The Tozier siblings always did have the worst sense of humour when they were upset.

“You love him,” Stanley said, a sardonic smile on his face. “Don’t worry, you’re not the only one. It’s always easy to fall for Richie. He’s very much like Bill in that aspect. Eddie and I would know. We grew up with them, remember?”

“Stanley,” Eddie said, deciding that it was time for him to intervene. It would be completely counter-productive if Rebekah ended up killing Stanley in her rage.

Fortunately, Beverly seemed to share his opinion. Before Rebekah could retort back at Stanley, Beverly had pulled her out of the med-bay. She gave Eddie a curt nod as she closed the door behind her and her best friend, leaving Eddie with Stanley and his family. All of Stanley’s anger seemed to drain out of him the moment the two women left, and he let out a heavy sigh as he leaned back into his pillows, running a hand through his curls. It was Stanley’s telltale move for whenever he was frustrated, and the familiarity of it urged Eddie to reach for his hand and hold it. The gesture brought a pang of pain to Eddie’s heart, even if it warmed it at the same time. When they were young, even though Bill was always Eddie’s best friend and Richie was Stanley’s, the group’s dynamics would change whenever one of them needed comforting. Richie would be the one who helped Eddie through his fake-asthma attacks, and it was always Bill who cheered Stanley up after his father would yell at him. Richie and Bill himself rarely needed comforting back then, because they preferred to hide their feelings instead of sharing them with Eddie and Stanley. It always made Eddie feel guilty to think about it.

When Eddie and Stanley met again after all those years apart, it did take some time to get used to the absence of Richie and Bill in their friendship. They would always look for Bill whenever they were trying to decide on something, only to be harshly reminded that there were only the two of them. It was even worse when one of them made a joke and they waited for Richie to comment, because then they remembered that Richie had died and their mood would turn somber for the next two days. If they were going to be honest, Eddie and Stanley wouldn’t have been friends if it weren’t for Richie and Bill. Sure, they actually had more in common, but maybe that was the problem. Eddie and Stanley were too much alike. It was why they needed Richie and Bill between them. To fill in their missing pieces. But Richie was dead, or so they thought, and they didn’t know where Bill was. But they had each other, and that was better than nothing.

And now it turned out that Richie was alive, and he was going to get Bill back for them.

“So, which one was it?” Patty asked, pulling Eddie out of his reverie. She was looking at her husband, who was frowning at her.

“Which one was what?” Stanley asked in return.

“Which one was it that you were in love with,” Patty elaborated. “You said that people always found it easy to fall for Richie or Bill. And you added that you and Eddie knew about it. So, which one was it, Stan? Richie or Bill?”

Stanley wasn’t the kind of person who blushed, but Eddie knew that if he were, Stanley would be blushing so hard that even his _hair_ would have turned red. They never really talked about it, but another reason why Eddie and Stanley got along so well was because they harboured feelings for their two friends. Eddie had known Bill first, a week before they’d met Richie and Stanley. Even at such a young age, Bill had had such a charisma that had captivated Eddie for a whole week until he’d met Richie. And Eddie didn’t immediately realise that Bill’s place on Eddie’s mental pedestal had now been taken by Richie. He had just turned seven years old, and he was listening to Richie talking about the fish his father had bought for him, and that was when Eddie realised he liked Richie more than he liked Bill. Had always been since the day they’d first met. He figured it was the turning point of the dynamics that the four of them had. With Eddie sticking close to Richie, monopolosing his time, Stanley and Bill were left to entertain each other. It was probably around that time that Stanley turned his affections from Richie to Bill. Looking at his friend, who was pursing his lips, Eddie almost thought that Stanley wouldn’t answer his wife’s question. Hence why it caught him off-guard a little when he did.

“I’ve known Richie practically since the day I was born," Stanley started slowly. "Our mothers are best friends, see. In turn, we too became best friends. Until we met Eddie and Bill, it was always me and Richie against the world—against the bullies who hated us both just because we were different. And we didn’t meet Eddie and Bill until we were three years old. Even then, I only became close with Bill when we were ten years old. That was when I realised that while I was Richie’s best friend, I wasn’t Richie’s _special_ friend.”

“Did you two ever date?” Patty asked, looking oddly calm for someone whose husband had just admitted that he used to be in love with his childhood best friend.

Stanley shook his head. “Ah, no. Bill’s straight as a door nail, and then I realised that while I might have had feelings for Bill and Richie, I never found myself attracted to any other men. I suppose I’m only gay for those two assholes.”

“Well, one of them is your best friend since birth. And the other one is… what? Your best friend since your formative years? Anyway, it’s only logical that you’re only attracted to them because you’ve formed such a strong bond. You guys were only children after all.”

“Or you’re probably just a demisexual,” Eddie quipped in. “I mean, you’ve been with Patty since college, right? And that’s like, just a few years after you last saw Bill.”

Patty nodded. “Yeah, I think so too. That makes a lot of sense, now that I think about it.”

“Okay, why are we talking about this?” Stanley said, scowling as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Why are we even talking about _me_? When we have a _much_ more interesting topic to discuss?”

“You’re my husband, darling. I like talking about you,” Patty replied with a grin. Stanley rolled his eyes, despite the fond smile on his face.

“I love you too, babylove,” Stanley said, giving his wife a sweet kiss.

“You two are so disgustingly cute,” Eddie grumbled, even though he couldn’t help the smile that escaped him. “You’re giving me toothache, for fuck’s sake.”

"Oh, you're one to talk," Patty scoffed. "Jane told me what happened before Robbie and I got here. She told me how Richie held you through your panic attack, then practically carried you to a room when you nearly fainted after getting too worked up. Even then, I witnessed how you were with Richie. You, Eddie Kaspbrak, literally swoon like a Victorian damsel when he’s around."

"I do not swoon," Eddie grumbled, scowling furiously even as he felt his face flushing red. "I'm forty years old, and I've been through a lot in the past two days. Plus, I have a heart condition. Stan, back me up on this."

"You don't have a heart condition, Eddie," Stanley said instead, the fucking traitor. "Just like you don't have asthma, or pollen-alergies, or gluten-alergies, or any bullshit your mum tried to make you believe you had to control you."

"Yeah, but I was only thirteen then. And like I just said, I'm forty now. I can't be as healthy as I was back in my tweens."

"Except you are, because I know for a fact you're insanely disciplined about keeping yourself in shape. So, shut up and let's go back to discussing the elephant in the room."

"Stanley—"

"Do you think Richie knows that the reason Betty moved so abruptly was because she was pregnant with his child?"

Eddie clenched his jaw, falling silent. Even though he, like Stanley, had known instantly the truth about Sabina's father, it didn't mean that he wanted to talk about it. Call him selfish, but he'd rather not be reminded of the greatest mistake of his life that had cost him, and Richie, twenty years of happiness. When he found out that Richie was dating Betty, he thought his heart had literally broken, because the pain he'd felt was unbearable. He was miserable for the two years that Richie and Betty were dating, and when he found out Betty had suddenly moved away, he’d been ecstatic. Eddie had naïvely thought that with Betty gone, and they were going to college already, he could finally be with Richie. But then his mum dragged him all the way to New York with her instead, and the rest was history.

Seeing Richie again in front of that café after two decades, most of which he'd spent thinking that Richie had died, Eddie wouldn't lie and say that he hadn't hoped that Richie still harboured something for him. He was even more convinced of this when he noticed the way Richie had acted around him, which was not that much better than how Eddie had acted around him—_shut up, Patricia_. But then Eddie put two and two together about Sabina, and acknowledged just how perfect Rebekah Montgomery was, and he started to have doubts. He started to doubt that Richie might still have feelings for him. They’d had a horrible break up when they were sixteen, then Richie went on to date the ideal girl that was Betty Ripsom, with whom he turned out to have the greatest daughter someone like Richie deserved to have, and said-daughter also was also raised by the perfect human being that was Richie's best friend. Even if he _still _loved Eddie the way Eddie still loved him, there were so many brilliant people in Richie's life already. So, why the hell would he choose plain and boring Eddie Kaspbrak?

Richie would never take Eddie back again, and talking about Sabina would just remind Eddie of it.

"Why are so invested in this?" Eddie asked instead. "You don't usually nose around things that aren't your business, Stan."

"I do when it's got something to do with my best friend," Stanley countered. "Don't you understand, Eddie? We're talking about Richie's daughter; his _very_ grown up daughter who he doesn't even know about. A daughter that Betty not only hid from him, but also abandoned."

"Why are you so sure that she abandoned Sabina? You only met the girl today. For all we know, Wilson could have been the name of Betty's husband."

"Because I know Betty's husband," Patty answered for Stanley. "I went to school with him, and when he married Betty, I was invited. And I don't think Sabina, who would have been around eighteen then, was there for the wedding."

"What the fuck," Eddie breathed, his eyes widening as he looked back at Stanley. "Did you go to the wedding?"

"I did," Stanley replied dryly. "It was one of the most awkward moments of my life. Betty couldn't even look at me when I came to her. And I'm pretty sure I didn't see an eighteen year old girl who bore a resemblance to Sabina being introduced as Betty's daughter."

"But she's..." Eddie trailed off, because now whatever good things he used to associate with Betty just didn't seem to fit someone who would abandon their child.

A little blond girl with Richie's eyes, who should have been born to a father who would have no doubt loved her beyond anything in this world, whatever the circumstances might be. A girl who was born with a smile on her face, like Adrian Mellon had been when he was born; like Libby and Richie had been when they were born, according to Maggie Tozier. A girl who would have grown up loved and adored by everyone in the Tozier family.

And the more Eddie thought about it, the angrier he became. He began to understand Stanley's reaction upon figuring out the truth about Sabina. Even though Richie was older than him, Stanley had always been protective of Richie. It only made sense that he'd gotten so angry on Richie's behalf. Then there was also the fact that Stanley seemed to get along really well with Sabina. From the moment he'd woken up after his surgery, the two had gotten on almost instantly. Eddie didn't know how Richie had missed it, but everything Sabina did just screamed Tozier antics to him. Eddie felt like he was looking at a small, blonde, _prettier_ Richie Tozier when he was watching Sabina interact with Stanley. It was partly why Eddie had become a little wary of the girl. She was so much like Richie, it was blowing his mind. Eddie wanted to dislike her so much, because she represented everything Eddie had lost. But the infuriating brat was just so darn _charming_.

Just like her father.

"Does Sabina even know who Richie really is?" Eddie couldn't help but to wonder aloud.

"I don't think so," Stanley said. "And I doubt that Montgomery has ever told her about it. Judging from how defensive she is, she seems really determined to hide that fact from both of them."

"That's not her call though," Eddie said hotly. "Both Richie and Sabina have the right to know the truth. Montgomery can't do that, right? That can't be allowed."

"It's not exactly her call either to reveal everything," Patty reminded them gently. "Sabina doesn't even know that her parents are not her biological parents. If anyone should come clean about this, it should be Betty and the Wilsons."

"Then neither Richie nor Sabina will ever know the truth then," Eddie said.

"That's not even the worst of the problem," Stanley added quietly. "I don’t know if you noticed, but Sabina seems to dislike Richie strongly."

"Oh yes," Patty agreed. "Every time Richie tried to talk to her, she always snapped rudely at him. She was very mean to him. It was almost like seeing you, Eddie."

"Shut up," Eddie snapped impatiently, hoping that his friends didn't notice the way he almost flushed again at the thought of Sabina, _Richie’s_ _daughter,_ being similar to him. Clearing his throat, he said, "I did notice that though. I think it's because she's so loyal to her mentor? And Montgomery made it clear she's not Richie's biggest fan at the moment."

"Could be," Stanley said as he nodded his head contemplatively. "It's obvious that Sabina looks up to Montgomery a lot. Probably more than the usual mentee-and-mentor relationship. She probably thinks Richie broke her mentor's heart."

“She would hate the truth then, if she found out that the man who broke the heart of the woman she practically worships turned out to be her father.”

“Maybe that’s what we should do instead?” Patty suggested. “Before we reveal the truth to either of them, we should make sure that they at least like each other.”

“Oh, Richie likes her, alright,” Stanley said. “He already looks at her like he used to do with Georgie. Like he does with Adrian now.”

Everyone who knew Richie knew that he’d always wanted to be a father, even when he was only a child himself. He’d doted on Georgie to the point that it often made Bill feel threatened, and Richie had instantly fallen for Adrian the moment his sister put her newborn son in Richie’s arms. Eddie wasn’t at all surprised to know that Richie had become so fond of Sabina already. He didn’t even doubt that deep down, Richie _had _felt the father-and-daughter bond between him and the blonde. If he found out that Sabina was his daughter before the girl could stop hating him, it would break Richie’s heart. Eddie didn’t think he could stand seeing a broken-hearted Richie a second time. Not after he’d broken it himself when they were sixteen. And for some reason, Eddie already knew that it would hurt Richie even more if he ever found out that his own daughter hated him.

“Patty’s right,” Eddie finally said. “We really have to make Sabina like Richie first before we even consider revealing anything to them. The only reason Richie doesn’t mind Sabina’s treatment of him is because he doesn’t know who she really is. But once he finds out, it will destroy him to know that his own daughter hates him.”

“Wow,” Stanley said. “I know you’re still in love with him, even after all these years. But _wow._”

“Fuck off, Uris,” Eddie retorted defensively. “It matters not what I feel or what I don’t. The most important thing now is to make sure Sabina doesn’t hate Richie anymore.”

“Why is it important that I don’t hate Richie?”

Eddie jumped about a foot the sound of Sabina’s voice. Whipping around in the direction of the door, he found the petite blonde looking at him with narrowed eyes, her arms crossed over her chest and her head tilted slightly to the right. The gesture was once again a strong reminder of Richie, and if Eddie hadn’t been too busy trying to come up with a convincing lie as fast as he could, he’d have found it amusing. Fortunately, Stanley proved to be smarter and sneakier than Eddie, because he’d given Sabina an answer before Eddie could.

“Because you’re supposed to be working together, aren’t you?” Stanley said easily. “Didn’t he come to be your backup? Where is he, by the way?”

Sabina seemed to buy the lie and marched to Stanley’s side like a petulant child, making her seemed younger than her actual age. “_Why _is your friend sooo fucking annoying, Stanley?” the blonde whined, ignoring Stanley’s question. “It was supposed to be _my _rescue mission. I had it all under control. Found Billy and his wife getting shot at in their lovely, palatial home by around ten guys. _I know right? What the fuck?_ And then me and Jane and Elena were doing just fine beating up the bad guys and rescuing our targets—_and why the fuck did no one tell me he’s married to _the _Audra Phillips?—_when Richie fucking _shot _the guy I was fighting. Everyone with manners knows that’s just rude.”

“Uh, Sabina, I think—“

“Then he went on to kill _all _of the bad guys despite me telling him that we should take at least one of them to interrogate. But _noooo. _Big, bad, hit-man _extraordinaire_ Richie Tozier wouldn’t listen to me.”

“Sabina—“

“God, you _never _stop, do you?” Richie drawled, making his presence known. His eyes were glinting with both mirth and exasperation as he looked at Sabina. “I saved your life, Tinker Bell, and you’re being such an ungrateful brat about me. Everyone with manners knows that’s _soooo fucking rude._”

The frighteningly accurate impression of Sabina was so hilarious, that Eddie couldn’t help himself when he began to laugh earnestly. It felt good, since it was probably his first genuine laugh in the past two days. But his laughter faltered almost immediately when he saw the person coming up behind Richie. He was _much _shorter than Richie, and probably even shorter than Eddie. It was weird seeing him so small when the last time Eddie had seen him, he’d seemed larger than life. But there was no mistaking those bright blue eyes of his. There was no mistaking that it was Bill Denbrough standing beside Richie, a hesitant but genuine smile on his face that he directed at Eddie and Stanley.

“Bill,” Stanley whispered, earning a bigger a smile from the man.

“Hey, guys,” Bill said. “It’s been years, hasn’t it?”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm ofqueensandwitches on tumblr! :D


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